As the son of a hockey mom, and the husband of a future hockey mom, I take great offense. (Not really)….

<li>Nothing new on the lineup front, although Tom Renney admitted he was weighing using Stephen Valiquette tomorrow in Philly because of the backup’s 3-0-1 record (and two shutouts) against the Flyers.”You think about that, sure. He’s had some success there, but we’ll see how it goes tonight,” Renney said.

<li>When Renney was asked how long was too long for any forward to sit, the coach threw out “three games.” By that measure, both Dan Fritsche and Patrick Rissmiller would play tomorrow, although don’t count on it.

<li>When Scott Gomez asked some of the writers how the vice presidential debate went last week — his TV in Prague didn’t work, he said –Â someone noted that Sarah Palin didn’t really answer any of the questions. “That’s an Alaskan thing,” Gomez said. “I don’t answer them, either.”

<li>Since it came up on the video chat, a source told me that Marek Malik is home in the Czech Republic but does have some serious offers from NHL teams which he is currently sifting through. Easy there. As far as I know, none of those teams are your Rangers.

<li>And if you must know, Brendan Shanahan’s agent, Rick Curran, said there was nothing new to report on No. 14 and the Rangers. “I’m not really in control of the situation,” he said, meaning nothing could be done until the Rangers clear space for Shanahan.

Update, 7:01 p.m.: Impressive video montage of Rangers history. Michael Obernauer, now occupying Dellapina’s seat next to the TV, gets an immediate demerit for fumbling too long to get to the right channel….

Update, 7:04 p.m.: The significance of Petr Prucha not being in the lineup didn’t hit me until he was just announced as a healthy scratch in a suit and tie. Ouch.

Update, 7:05 p.m.: The biggest cheer of the introductions? I thought it was Henrik Lundqvist, until Chris Drury was announced as captain.Â

Update, 7:09 p.m.: And here come Andy Bathgate, Harry Howell, and Adam Graves. Big cheers for all three. Jonathan Toews and Drury take the draw. It’s a tie, until Drury sweeps the leg and takes Toews down. OK, not really…

Update, 7:12 p.m.: John Amirante sings the anthem, and now it’s time to drop the puck. I tell you, even if you’re just a writer, if you can’t get excited about opening night, you’re in the wrong business.

Update, 7:24 p.m.: Rangers 1, Blackhawks 0: Wade Redden gets his first goal at the Garden after Chris Drury feathers a pass through the slot and Cristobal Huet kicks out a juicy rebound to Redden’s stick. The $39 million man now has two goals in his first three games.

Update, 7:31 p.m.: A couple of jittery shifts for Lauri Korpikoski. A few more like that for the Korpedo, and we might have another Dave ScatchardÂ sighting at the Training Center next week…

Update, end of first: Rangers 1, Hawks 1: The Hawks tie it up after Brian Campbell flies into the Rangers zone, and sends a shot off the post that kicks to Patrick Kane. The ice had been tilting in that direction, anyway, since Redden’s goal, so the Rangers need to tidy things up for the second. The good news for the Rangers is they’ll start it with a power play for 1:54.

Update, 8:23 p.m.: If his first goal is any indication, Aaron Voros is going to be a popular Ranger. He’s not Sean Avery, but that has plenty of positives to a team as well.

Update, 8:34 p.m.: Rangers 3, Hawks 1: We can safely say the Voros experiment with Dubinsky and Zherdev has been a success. Voros clears the middle for Dubinsky, and Dubinsky breaks in alone on Huet, where he beats the goalie under the crossbar. For what it’s worth, Huet has looked awful tonight.

Update, 9:09 p.m.: Rangers 3, Hawks 2. Game back on. On another note, Nigel Dawes has struggled all night. If someone’s going to come out for tomorrow, it could be him.

Update, 9:11 p.m.: Loyal reader Jen writes to tell me that the Dubinsky-Voros line is now being called the Playstation line, based on their playing NHL ’09 together and putting themselves on the same line.

Update, 9:19 p.m.: So the Playstation line it is. The only argument is who was more pumped after their goal — Voros, Dubinsky, or Zherdev?

Update, 9:27 p.m.: Time is winding down. The Rangers are on their way to being 3-o for the first time in 19 years, with three of their four goals coming from new players. So maybe there’s hope for this group yet…

Update, postgame: Good feelings all around after the win, including this line from Aaron Voros:

â€œI think people are going to learn thatâ€™s our identity â€” we work. Weâ€™ve got a lot of talent in here and this talent works. Itâ€™s a pretty mean mix, and itâ€™s going to be a fun team to watch and play with.â€

Brandon Dubinsky, meanwhile, confirmed the Playstation thing.

“There’s some times a tendency to put each other on the same line and see what happens. When Z’s guy scores a goal in the game, he gets all excited and celebrates on the couch.”

108 Comments

Campbell wasn’t playing in that game, really only Janik, and Sopel were the only decent Dman that night. But he did still give up 7, and he gave up 4 two other times in the pre season. But i wouldn’t look to much into it since Hank had a pretty bad pre season as well.

NYR never had a problem with Huet though. Unless Nyr makes him look good like they do with Smith.

I just hope Nyr cashes in on there open nets, like they didn’t do in Prague. Gotta win the home opener !!!

Very entertaining game so far. Too many turnovers and odd man rushes against the Rangers though. I love Cally’s grit. Voros looks real good with Dubi. Voros just drives to the net time after time. Naslund’s been solid again. The Hawks just have some tremendous young talent. Lundqvist has been really good. Dawes has more of a hop in his step playing with Callahan and Korpikoski so far tonight imo.

Nyr is moving the puck horribly in the defensive zone, unless my eyes deceive me. Very sloppy. Hopefully they pop in a PP goal. Lol, and once again, what was it, two open nets they missed already ? Gotta bank those in damnit !!

Just tremendous play all around leading to the goal. Dubi stole the puck and then outsmuscled Bolland. Voros is a favorite of mine already. Nice play by Zherdev by knocking down the puck starting it all.

Orr, i’m surprised you’re surprised. Did you not know who was on this team? Did you not see the breakaways and odd man rushes the Rangers gave to TB the first 20 minutes of opening night in Prague? This defensive unit has holes because the defense becomes very suspect at times.

BTW – Betts made a STUPID play, i couldn’t believe he did that. It was waaay to risky even if Dru expected it. That turned into a 5 on 3, and Hank had to make a nice save. That shot could have been blocked by Betts. I expect a play like that by one of the younger PK’ers, not him.

Also nice to see Pauly getting into a fight, he’s a solid D man, and im glad Slats re signed him, he hasn’t done anything bad. He’s just a solid guy to have on D, and a good teammate.

Betts proved to me that the PK will remain excellent without him, he just took off and nothing happened.

Get rid of Betts, we need a 4th line that can hit and score. Betts and Sjostrom cannot hit OR score! Orr cannot score.

3rd line needs a confidence booster, they need to score some goals and idiot coach needs to give them more icetime or again they will lose all their confidence. We are up 2 goals, any smart coach would use this as an opportunity to get some players out of the funk.

The so called “first line” was not just the worst, but worst by far. I was feeling more confident when the Betts’ line was on. Naslund was unable to make a single right move. I hope, it’s just a result of a jetlag.

I would play the same line up tomorrow just see who plays well with whom was a fluke or the start of something good.
Play Prucha tomorrow and you will poison the team-
and if they loose ,we have to hear “well they played last night”…lets see.

Play Prucha and you poison the team. Lmao hilarous and clueless post. Bob get help man get help. Korpkoski might be more invisable than Dawes tonight. I would not be surprised if Korpikoski gets sent down in the next few weeks if he doesn’t show more. Staal had a quietely solid game. Rangers D needs to be better with the puck tomorrow. The Flyers have three lines that can score. Only the Wings are deeper up front.

Fun game, what a way to be 3-0! I hope they didn’t tire themselves out with their seemingly new stategy to keep pressuring in the third rather than turtling. I did notice a weak defensive play by Girardi, being mesmorized by the puck rather than covering his man, but not much to complain about.

Rissmiller seemed to be enjoying himself in the pre-game for not having played a game yet.

I counted 20 “you knows” from Voros in the post-game. I would have swapped his star of the game position with Dubinsky, though. I guess it’s better than “what can you say.” :)

just got back from the game. im gonna say we r 2.5 and 0. they gotta play a lot better than that. i LOVED the celebration of the zherdev goal, score on one side celebrate on the other. he should be a politician cause he knows its important to keep everyone happy

Tonights game…unimpressive. Naslund was almost invisible. Dawes was invisible(obviously we need Naslund to be much better than he was tonight to have success this year but maybe less obvious is how important it is to the success of the team for Dawes to live up to his vast potential). Dawes seems to either not understand his role as a lethal offensive threat or is just not as confident in his abilities as he should be or needs to be. We were very sloppy tonight. Passing was not very crisp and there were far too many giveaways and people just not playing positionally soundly.
Despite the somewhat lackluster performance by many who need to play much better I am still very optomistic. Naslund will play better. Dawes? Let’s hope so. Dubinsky lived up to his recent play. And Zherdev and Voros played very well tonight. I was also really impressed with Callihan and Korpikoski continues to demonstrate why he is on this team. As far as the sloppy disjointed play for much of the game…it will get better. It is only regular season game three and it is a game after a long layoff, plus they looked much more cohesive in their last game against tampa. So to summarize. We played kind of crappy tonight, save one line, but we still won and most of the issues can and I believe will be easily straightened out once the team starts to settle in to a regular schedule. Naslund needs to step it up, but I believe he can and will. Finally, Dawes…where are you? We need you man!

I would not be surprised to see a third line of Rissmiller-Fritsche-Callahan tomorrow. While it is tough to get together with only one day of practice, it’s also putting fresh bodies out there. It would at least be interesting to see these players, especially in a typically rough Philadelphia. It’s gonna be a tough one tomorrow, so let’s not go totally nuts if we lose, unless it’s like 5-0 and absolutely turrrrrible.

Just back from the game, great atmosphere at the Garden. Awesome to see the new guys performing. Everyone loves Dubi. Loudest ovation for Drury during pre game. Loved the fighting from Callahan and Mara. As a hockey Pat Kane’s goal was wow. Great shot from Zheredev. Felt like Dawes wasn’t on the ice tonight. Thought the 4th line, especially Sjostrom had a nice game.

Bob/Vinny- You trashed the team and especially Renney all last summer and then continued to rip Renney throughout the first game until the Rangers stormed back and won the game. Then you disappeared and it was a peaceful season on the board. It was as if you didn’t want to face the fact that the team succeeded (even after only one game) and you would be embarrassed.

As always, you can dish out the name calling, but can’t take it. Your calls to trade Gomez for Reinprecht were asinine, and you’re right, it was a jerky thing to call you out on it. I just wanted to see if you would respond to me identifying your past. If you don’t care if someone knows you’re the same guy, why do you constantly switch names? Show some guts and stick with one name.

Betts is not an All Star by any means, but he did not play as badly as you claim, in fact he generated some offense tonight. Orr had some excellent forechecking and so did Sjostrom. The top line was weak but a good team can find ways to win when one line isn’t working. They managed that tonight.

Your right, I may not have a life, but your on these boards a lot more than I am. So make a comment like that and then look in the mirror.

And who called Renney an idiot coach tonight? Oh, what a surprise. Of all nights to make this claim, moving Voros to the Dubi line works like a charm and you call out Renney? Or do you believe Dubi should get credit for putting Voros on his line in Playstation?

Staal Wart- bob is the same guy who used to post here. He went by Yenner Mot and then Vinny Pooh. He’s one of those guys who wears out his welcome with one name, gets banned (or ostracized) and then comes back writing the same junk under a different name. He’s been on the anti-Renney kick for three seasons now, and the same with Betts. His favorite players not on the Rangers are Joel Lundqvist and Steve Reinprecht who he thought Sather should do anything to trade for. I should have left it alone, but he got my blood boiling. Now I know why guys can’t ignore Avery!

I enjoyed the game! Poor Chris Drury! I bet he was mortified with that fall lol. At least he was able to laugh it off lol. Anyway, the PS3 line was VERY impressive! Dawes has been pretty disappointing…I hope he regains his confidence and ups his production. Redden has definitely stepped it up. Apparently Betts REALLY REALLY wants to stay…that was the most effort I have seen from him in a long time…if not EVER! SOOOOOOO nice to have the boys back on Broadway. I can’t wait until November! (Going to 2 games when I come home to visit lol)

Either way, we have areas to improve, but I was thrilled either way. Can’t wait to get my Drury jersey. OH and how can I forget Henrik…incredible as usual!

I was at the game and between the 2nd and 3rd went to the player store. Not sure if it is a sign, but on the sale rack they had these ugly blue shirts, leftover Jagr shirts and Jerseys and to my suprise Prucha shirts. Did the garden store jump the gun on some insider info or did I miss the back of the shirt saying Jagr or something?

My comment during the game when Dubi’s line hit the ice seemed true, “good, they sent out our #1 line!”

Nice win tonight.Like this style of game.I’ve waited for this for the last three seasons.This was only possible if Jagr and his posse were not here.Anyway,kudos to Renney for making up the second line.This is his team now and he is on the hot seat.

The king was really good tonight.

Rozy was solid for the most part.

Redden was very good again,so far so good with him.

Girardi was steady as always.

Kalinin was shaky at times,but was ok overall.

Mara was very steady as well.

Staal cintinues to be the best dman on the team.

Gomez was only ok tonight.

Drury was decent at best.

Naslund was ok.overall,not an overly impressive game from them.

Dubinsky was simply outstanding again tonight.This kid can do it all!! Is a future captain.Also won 11 of 15 faceoffs.Did I mention how great he was tonight?

Vorors was fantastic as well.I was not a big fan of his signing,but I will gladly admit that I may have jumped the gun in my crtiticism.

Zherdev was great as well.It looks like he loves playing here.And loves playing with Dubi and Voros.If he can play most of the season like he played tonight,he’ll be awsome.

Cally is still one of my favorite players.I;m still confident that he’ll start scoring alot of goals for this team real soon.All other aspects of his game are first rate.

Korpi was a bit nervous but played pretty well overall.I think he can get 12-15 goals this year.

Dawes was awfull tonight!! He’s been that way for the first three games.It’s time to take a rest.I don’t understand why Fritsche can’t get into a game.He played very well in preseason and deserves ice time.

Biggest thing I notice with this team through 3 games, is that almost all of the bad play in their own zone is a result of the wings not being on the boards properly for the break out, thus leaving a dman to try to clear the zone himself, which ends up leading to a turnover. The same thing happened a bunch in the 1st TB game and clearly Renney addressed it for the 2nd game, but the same thing happened tonight. I specifically remember Prucha and Dawes not being on the boards at the right time in the TB game and tonight again it was Dawes not being where he was supposed to be for the breakout of the zone. Its almost like he forgets to concentrate sometimes in the dzone. Prucha is really kinda of superflous to this team right now.

I also love how every “expert” has us doing nothing. At no time over the last 4 years have I felt as good about the team as I do right now. We have 2 legit scoring lines, a good energy line and a good checking line. Colton Orr is now more than just a fighter. They really just need someone who can score a goal every so often to play on the 4th line.

I for one am glad that Jagr, Straka, Avery and Shanahan are not on this team. I look forward to some games now against real teams (i.e., not TB or even Chicago, whose goaltending was brutal). Curious how they stack up against the Flyers, Penguins and Red Wings next week.

Colorado Fart, where is your Straka who you had a hardon for? If it was up to you, we would still have a team full of garbage like Jagr, Straka, Shanahan, Malik, Strudwick, etc. Thankfully even Renney has more brains than you. And you have a nerve to call me out? And you are an idiot if you think I wanted Reinprecht for Gomez, Reinprecht was just a throw in to fill a hole left by Gomez, the guy I wanted was Jovanovski. So keep being a retard that you are.

Ian, our 3rd line will eventually get scoring. They won’t be putting home goals like crazy but whether its Prucha, Korpedo, Callahan, Dawes, or even Fritsche, they are fast enough and forecheck hard enough to contribute with some goals.

Our transition defense is our weakpoint right now. When we try to turn up the play in our own end to get up ice, like Ian mentioned, wings aren’t there or are staying too high. Mind you one thing we did very well defensively was keep them to the outside. They had a few chances in the slot, one of which they scored on, but overall when they were owning play, they were staying on the outside. When we were owning play, we were crashing the net very hard and getting pucks on goal.

BTW, it was great to see Voros, Dubi, and Z just go nuts celebrating their goals. Especially Zherdev because with all he had to deal with and go through in Columbus and never really feeling like he was accepted there, he clearly looks like he loves playing here already. When Zherdev likes where he is and feels like hes wanted, he plays his best, and when he plays his best, he’s one of the top players in the league. Lets hope this keeps going.

Tomorrow will surely be a test, especially because its the 2nd game in a row, but lets hope we get a win. If they keep working hard and tighten it up on the breakout, then they have a great chance.

Actually, bob, I appreciated Straka and Jagr for their time in Ranger uniform, and you calling them garbage is ridiculous, but I agreed it was time for them to go. I never liked Malik and I insisted Strudwick was an adequate 7th D-man, we can agree to disagree there. Your calling me an idiot when you thought that Reinprecht could “fill” the hole left by Gomez. Your juvenile comments (“fart, retard, hardon, etc.”) is why I made the puberty remark. You still can’t have an intelligent discussion without getting into flame mentality and degrading others on this board. I continue to feed your ego by responding to you, so it’s my fault. Your blind hatred of Renney and Betts is why I have an issue with you. Our coach did a good job with this team tonight, and looks smart for making a good move. You continue to call him an idiot. Betts had a good effort tonight, but you still blasted him.

The difference between me and you is that I am willing to admit when I am wrong (I ripped Renney when I heard he was going to bench Prucha in Prague, a move I thought was stupid, and it didn’t even happen). You have such an ego, you can never admit you were wrong (Sorry, but Gomez for Jovo is not what this team needed last year or this year) or give Renney credit when it is obviously due. As always, I challenge you to respond with an intelligent post. I’ll refrain from any more comments that will incite you, and you can continue to change your posting name as often as you like, since it will always be obvious who you are.

Also I see some hate for Sjoie and I don’t get that. He played pretty well. He just missed scoring that amazing turn around shot. And he was getting decent chances. its tough to play with Orr and Betts but he’s someone who does it pretty well without sacrificing too many offensive chances. I’d play Rissy – Fritsche – Prucha tomorrow. I really think at this point we should just roll the 4th line depending on the opposition because all those guys can play, even Orr at this point.

Also Redden really impressed me today. he makes it look like hes not trying, but hes just so calm. Kalinin played pretty well too. sure he had some turnovers, but he always got back to fix them. Also the one shift where he had like 2 of them, he couldn’t get off teh ice because they just couldn’t clear the puck deep so he had to come back and make two plays while he was out there for almost 2 minutes. Hopefully he continues to settle in because hes got really good vision with the puck and it’ll look like hes beat, but instead of pulling a Malik and hooking, he drops his stick down and pushes the guy outside.

Dubinsky’s line was fantastic. Voros sure makes a difference. Dawes is taking ice time from Fritz as he has no clue how to play positional hockey in the defensive zone. He may have been out there for both goals. Time to drop him out of the lineup along with Pruck-up

Hope Renney doesn’t tinker with the Playstation line. Let them play until they show, if ever, it’s not working. These guys remind me of Vickers, Tkaczuk and Fairbairn. Good size, in your face, and Zherdev is even more offensive than Fairbairn.

I can see why Sather picked up the extra forwards. First for buying insurance for Betts, Orr, Prucha, Korpokoski.

Korpokoski is doing a good job on line 3, Betts is doing a good job on line 4 so that makes Rissmiller expendable. Orr looking a lot better, skating wise, so that eliminates Shanny for the 4th line. Only Fritsche has a shot, either as left wing on line 4 making Sjostrom expendable or as left wing on line 3 making Prucha and possibly Dawes expendable.

Prucha and a couple of those guys for a hard hitting D would be a good deal if Sather can find a taker.

It was nice to meet you too Agravaine. And if you haven’t had a slice there before, Roses Pizza is pretty damn good. Obviously there are some things the team needs to tighten up, but I will take a win any day of the week. And if this team is going to give up a few chances because they are being creative and trying to play a fast, attacking game, then I can live with that. As long as Hank can bail us out and as long as we can light the lamp more than the other team. Dubinsky is going to have an AMAZING year, and if that line can keep clicking and stay together, we are going to be in a lot more games than not. Let’s Go Rangers!

First, I agree with the couple people who were at the game. It was a good game, not this “great” game you all keep talking about. “Great Line!” Yes, Nikky, Dubi, and Voros were really impressive. But let’s look past that… 4 odd-man rushes against in the first 12-13 minutes of the game. 2 goals against that were Redden’s fault. A first line that went invisible. Drury…Drury who? (hello, anyday now…does he have a point?) Naslund and Gomez were much less dynamic than they were in Prague, and I’m not really sure why – but it SHOULD be addressed by Renney.

As to the players who need to be shaken up:
Dawes, invisible.
Sjoestrom, I barely noticed him on a shift.
Korpedo, where art thou?

Anyway – nice win. Exciting team. Much to work on, and if it weren’t for Hank and Chicago ripping shots wide, this game would’ve been blown open 4-1 (chicago leading) halfway through the first period.

Staal Wart, last night was the kind of game I would challenge you to defend. The defense was bad, they allowed MUCH more odd-man chances against than the opportunities they created. They were porous the first 2/3rds of the first and while better the rest of the game, still questionable. If you let up 10 shots a period and 6 shots of those are A-grade quality, that’s not a strong defense. Just because Hank stops .920% doesn’t mean our defense is good, it just means he makes up for the faults (as he did much of last night, last year, and years prior. I think too many people credit the defense when Hank and good back-checking forwards are really helping out their goals against avg.

Great start to a season.
Dubi is growing into a superstar before our very eyes. What an honest, gritty, dominant 2-way player he is becoming. Shoot, pass, hit & non-stop energy and enthusiasm.
Zherdev has been an amazing addition. I’m not seeing the “lazy” or “selfish” player he was purported to be. He is not afraid to shoot, but he seems more than willing to set up his mates as well, and he seems to play a 2-way game & enjoys hitting folks as well. His skill level is undeniable & he seems like a good, enthusiastic teammate. I’ll settle for the occasional over-handling of the puck in view of the
all the chances he helps create, & I’m sure with guidance, that area will improve.

Hank was really sharp & saved our bacon far too often. I was concerned about the # of times he was left all alone to fend for himself. On TV it was hard for me to judge where those breakdowns were happening. I know Chicago had some great offensive skill players, but it was far to easy for them to break in on him all alone.

Looks like we’re still weak at clearing out the front of our goal again this year, but I really like what I’m seeing from this team with great speed, forechecking, puck movement, & constant presence in front of the opposing Goalie. All those close in chances we’re getting will surely pay off with more goals.

If Shanny can’t skate any better than he did 2cd half of last season, (hopefully it was only injury related) I can’t really see him fitting in on this team once we start unloading forwards, much as I respect & admire him. Yes, he can probably still fire a wicked one timer from the slot on the PP, & be good in the shootout, but that limited role is not worth the $ & roster spot & speed we will give up.

I like Sam Rosen, but am VERY tired of listenening to he & Joe babble on during play, instead of actually calling the play. Sam maybe mentions every 5th player who handles the puck or whacks at a rebound, etc. They are becoming almost almost VITALE-LIKE irritating to me. Anyone feel that way? I will say the MSG numerous replays & angles shown after goals, near goals, & other plays is truly amazing. I wish Cox Cable would provide the few High Def games that Center Ice provides. Only High Def hockey I get to see is Versus & NBC. I love Hockey Season. Go Rangers.

Ken
Yeah a little. But I think it would be worse if they called every little thing. Some announcers do that and it just gets really annoying. We can see for ourselves; all we is a little backround description thank you!

Cliff- It wouldn’t be worth the price of travel!
LI Joe- I know that you, like me, who has been here since the beginning of Sam’s blog remember this guy and how he ruined most discussions on this board. I fed the beast, though. I couldn’t resist.

Agravaine – Very nice and great choice of music. I loved it! From one that couldn’t be there – thanks! The Garden was rockin’ last night – I could feel the electricity coming through the TV. I know the floors and walls were vibrating.

Nice win! Four goals â€“ itâ€™s just a matter of time before they start going in. It wasn’t one of their overall better games but I’ll take two points any day. I know we’re only 3 games in but I can’t resist – we’re #1 in the League. Dubinsky/Zherdev/Voros – 7 points -awesome. Great goal by Dubi. Looks like we’ve got our second line set!

I do like Dawes and believe he has the ability. Give him a wake-up call in Hartford again before closing the book on him entirely. It seemed to work last time. It’s nice to see Orr up his game during the off seasons the fourth line definitely looks better. I’d like to see what Fritsche can do with Callahan and Korpikoski That line was quiet last night as well as Gomez/Drury/Nasland. Coach should sit Dawes, Prucha and Rissmiller. I think Sjostrom should get another shot. It was good to see Redden get another goal.

Some of the wrinkles – got to cut down on turnovers and the defense needs to tighten up in front of Henrik. One of the big issues the last couple of seasons was consistency or lack of it. If we can iron out these wrinkles and the team play a consistent game â€“ their game â€“ we will definitely be a force to be reckoned with. The one thing I am sensing from this team is DESIRE and PRIDE â€“ things that have been missing. .

Now I will say the hardest thing Iâ€™ve had to say in a long time â€“ I no longer see a spot for Shanahan on the bench (behind it maybe).

Iâ€™ve stated I was guardedly optimistic about this season and that optimism is getting stronger. Yeah â€“ I know itâ€™s early yet but Iâ€™m really liking what Iâ€™m seeing!!!

How many games before the “Second” line gets some real PP time? The “First” line got about 4 minutes each last night and the “Second” only got 1.5 min. I say go with the hot hand, not with which line gets paid more…

On that note, I’m glad Redden has been jumping into the play successfully, but he’s got to keep his head on a swivel in the defensive zone. Both goals against last night featured him standing around not covering anyone while Rozsival was surprisingly doing his job.

Dawes can’t be sent to the minors without passing waivers (which he obviously won’t do) I am pretty surprised by his struggles. He was one of the best forwards in the second half of last year. Callahan was the only guy on the line that added anything yesterday.

graves9
October 11th, 2008 at 1:31 pm
Dawes canâ€™t be sent to the minors without passing waivers (which he obviously wonâ€™t do) I am pretty surprised by his struggles. He was one of the best forwards in the second half of last year. Callahan was the only guy on the line that added anything yesterday.

I agree, either scratch him for a game or 2 or try him with Gomez and Drury–2 players that he had chemistry with.

Prucha was a great fit for that 3rd line–they were energetic and all over the place, creating heavok and turnovers and stealing pucks, Fritsche probably would be a good fit as well. But onceDawes was put in instead of Prucha, only Callahan looked good.

graves9, I was afraid of that. I really like the kid, he really showed some good potential last season. Maybe sitting him a bit will have the desired effect. Hopefully he’ll shake it off and won’t be packaged up and shipped out.

I think tonight will be a telling game against a team that is definitely going to give us a run for our money in the hit department. We will see if our guys can go hit for hit all game long, and if they still will go in to corners and win the loose puck battles. I think the Flyers have a good team this year, and I expect that it is going to be a very close battle for the division between us, them, and the pens come years end. Another thing I liked about Voros last night was his ability to win loose puck battles behind the net and also he showed that he can make some nice passes as well. Having a player with a big body and good hands is hard to come by these days, and I am not saying that this guy is the next coming of Cam Neely, but what I am saying is that he seems to compliment Dubi and Z very well. I know it was just one game, but I like what I saw.

i think Frits and Riss will get a start tonight. Probably both on the 3rd line with Callahan. I would leave lines 1,2 and 4 alone for this game. I live in South Jersey and will be attending the Rangers/Flyers game tonite wearing my Leetch 3rd jersey with the “C”. Wish me luck getting out of there alive if the Rangers spoil their Home Opener !!!!

P.S. The Rangers are 6-0 in Philly when i’ve attended the games, hopefully i’ll be going for 7 straight ….. (knock on wood)

The Flyers defense is just decimated by injury. Timmonen and Coburn are terrific but the rest is slow footed and inexperienced. The Flyers forwards are huge and highly skilled. Their top three lines are as talented as any in the league. They drive real hard to the net and it could be a huge issue with the Rangers rather soft defense.